The sweet smell of victory!

So, my friend Lisa is fantastic... fabulous... fun-loving... AND she just turned 40. She thought such a momentous occasion would go by quietly and without any fanfare. Um, hello .... I don't think so! The big 4-0 should be acknowledged and celebrated, after all "40 is the new 20!"

I have to admit that I am feeling pretty good about my skills of stealth and my ability to not only plan a fun-filled surprise party for her under her nose, but even better... she helped me plan a lot of it without even knowing the night was all about her. Bwaa-ha-ha!

The key to the success of this event were my co-conspirators: our fabulous friends who participated, the awesome and amazing B (I love this man! He cooks and cleans and helps me get ready for such shindigs!), and of course our friend Chris - Lisa's hubby - and "the inside man!"

Lisa thought she would have a quiet family celebration followed by a delish dinner with my seester and I at Pappasito's and that would be it. Bwaa-ha-ha... I don't think so!

Then Lisa and I started planning what she "thought" would simply be a Girls' Night to watch the Twilight movies in preparation for the upcoming June release of movie 3 - Eclipse. Little did she know that:

1. This was a surprise party for her!


2. This was a surprise party for her!


3. This was a surprise party for her!
   

All I can say is... Bwaa-ha-ha! (I've been saying that alot in my super secret emails to the other conspirators and now it seems I can't stop!).

With everyone but Lisa aware of "the real deal for Saturday"...

1. The food menu was planned
   (OG breadsticks & salad AND Brian's famous meatballs)
2. A basket of favorite things was put together for Lisa's gift
3. An incredible Twilight-themed cake was created
   (Wow, Laura... it was AWESOME!)
4. The decorations were put up
   (Thanks Karin and Shelby!)
5. And the evening entertainment of watching Twilight was planned
   

Because Lisa rocked the Bella look at my Halloween par-tay, she and I thought it would be fun if everyone dressed as a character from the book. Well, we all dressed up - just not like she thought! While Lisa sported a modified version of her Bella look, the rest of us dressed in Twilight colors - red, black, and white.

To make sure it was a surprise, everyone arrived early and my seester picked her up just to make sure her arrival took place at the exact right time.

Everything was perfect: Lisa was surprised (the look on her face when she figured out what was happening was PRICELESS!), the food was delicious, the company was great, pictures were taken (Thanks, CJ!) and the evening was a blast!

Happy birthday, LaLaLaLeesa! I know that you wanted a quiet celebration of your big day, but all of us sure had a great time celebrating with you!

* Our friend Wendi wasn't here yet when we took pictures and I guess I was so enthralled by the movie when she got here, that I forgot to take any more pictures, but I am soooo glad she came!

** The awesome quotes that I framed and displayed around my house came from the great website, Hostess with the Mostest.